Stoke Green

Ah, you found it too! A few days ago I used that very same article to produce this article of my own

Fantastic your article, Rob. What memories! You would not have known Duckham's ironmongers (and I believe sold Duckham's oil I needed for my Lambretta scooter) in the old photo, nearest the camera. I think the post office was next door, nearer to the entry to the famed fish & chip shop we all used.

The JJ Ward Archive on Cov Dig is a super resource - you'll see the earliest colour photography of Coventry as well as some of the neg scans of Coventry's most well known postcards. However, my favourite is this, Stoke Pool. It's about 1910 as the skinny lad looking at the camera is Ward's son.

A fantastic photo, full of life and fun. The pool was built in 1933 though, so that's the earliest date this picture can be.

What is the square (red brick?) building centre right? I don't recall any such in later times!

I'm not sure, Prof. Zooming in on it, it looks like it could be a wooden structure - maybe temporary?

The little boy in the foreground is the ten year old son of the photographer - dating this to 1911. Perhaps the pool was refurbished in 1933?

Rob has an early photo of the pool here. That and the map from 1926 suggest that there was no concrete bund wall before then.

There are lavatories marked on the 1937 onwards maps. These might be them?

According to local newspapers, the paddling pool was opened in July 1924, and there is a photo in 1932 which shows the concrete wall.

Our families, our mum and her two sisters and all the children, about 15 in all, used to gather here for picnics and paddling etc., late 1940's/early 1950's. We had some brilliant times. Prior to Covid, us remaining cousins used to meet up too.

Hope you get together there again in the future.

Stoke National School. Thanks for your help, Rob! Members don't forget to click top right for FULL SCREEN!

Prof. I did some searching some time ago as to perhaps why it was called Empress Building. I found there was a ship named Empress of Great Britain built in John Brown shipyard in Scotland, first sailed in 1931. Maybe during the last gasp of the Empire it was named after this ship (second of three).